


Day Seven: Blanket Fort

by Authoranna



Series: Comfortember 2020 [7]
Category: Star Trek, Star Trek: Enterprise
Genre: Comfortember 2020, F/M, Family Drama, In March, Meet-Cute, You're Welcome, bed sharing, how they met!, i was really busy okay, kind of, that makes that scene in the sickbay so much funnier imo, that ties into something from Shuttlepod one, there's a chaotic cat character, this was a lot longer than i planned but hehehe it had a mind of its own, you thought i forgot about these but i didn't!
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-03
Updated: 2021-03-03
Packaged: 2021-03-15 18:00:36
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,395
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29812266
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Authoranna/pseuds/Authoranna
Summary: Snippets through the years of blanket forts built by Lieutenant Charlotte Watson and Lieutenant Malcolm Reed. It's cute, a little bit of a meet-cute, there's some angst, but mostly fluff.
Relationships: Malcolm Reed/OFC
Series: Comfortember 2020 [7]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1999417
Kudos: 2
Collections: Comfortember 2020





	Day Seven: Blanket Fort

**Author's Note:**

> I promise I didn't forget about Comfortember! It's just that I was finishing a semester and getting ready to move out and then I did move right after the new year and then I've been unpacking and also school has been kicking my butt again, and work, and also there's still a pandemic going on so yeah, it's been a lot.  
> Welcome back to the world of Watson and Reed, hope you enjoy this very long piece. I'm starting on day eight right now!

_**Earth, February 2145** _

Ensign Charlotte Watson placed the last blanket on the chair, tying it to a rung of the backrest and draping it over the other chair to create the final wall. She stood back, admiring her new blanket fort for a second before beginning to crawl through the opening she had left. She had already placed a PADD on the floor within her fort, as well as extra blankets and her project bag. All her Friday night plans consisted of was watching old movies and knitting, and it was off to a great start.

Ten minutes into her relaxing and quiet evening, chaos broke loose. It was all Stinky’s fault, to be honest. The cat, awakening from his nap and seeing blankets and what looked like a hammock laid out just for him, decided it would be the perfect spot for yet another nap after dinner. The gray and brown, fluffy, heavy cat jumped up onto the roof of the blanket fort, promptly pulling the blankets and chairs towards himself and landing on Charlotte’s head with a yowl.

The chairs clattered to the floor, one narrowly missing Charlotte’s PADD. She did her best to right the chairs from within the fort, doing well enough to be able to get out from under the catastrophe. As she crawled out from beneath the blankets, she heard the doorbell beep at her. She muttered as she walked over to the door, silently cursing her cat for causing the ruckus that had disturbed her neighbors.

The door slid open at her command, revealing a young man in a brown henley and jeans on the other side. His hair was relatively short, dark brown locks combed back but not gelled down. He wore a look of concern, though perhaps that was just Charlotte’s wishful thinking. He had a rather sharp jawline, and she met his eyes quickly when she realized she hadn’t said anything yet.

“Hello,” she said quickly, leaning against the door jamb. “Can I help you?”

“I was walking past and heard a rather loud noise. Are you okay?” The man asked. He was not North American, his accent giving that away quickly. British, maybe?

“That was just my blanket fort collapsing under the weight of the cat,” she chuckled nervously. “Everything’s fine, though. Thanks for checking. I didn’t realize there was a new tenant on this floor. When did you move in?”

“I didn’t; I was just visiting... a friend. I was leaving when I heard the noise,” he replied, putting his hands in his coat pockets. It was imitation leather, though she had heard no one could really tell the difference; real leather hadn’t been used in years.

“Oh okay. Cool. Well, maybe I’ll see you around again. Thanks again. Night,” she said, closing the door before he could answer.

A second later, the doorbell rung again. She reached up, opening it again.

“I think your cat got out,” he said slowly, pointing down the hallway towards the cat scampering away.

“Motherfu-.” Charlotte sprinted down the hall, causing the cat to begin running from her, thinking it was a game of tag. She managed to corner him at the end of the corridor, but he sprinted through her legs and back towards the still-open door to Charlotte’s apartment.

The man was still standing at the door, having moved to beside the door to watch the kerfuffle that was unfolding. Stinky swerved into the apartment to avoid the man, who hit the button to close the door as Charlotte ran towards him.

“Thanks,” she said slightly breathlessly, leaning against the door. “Stinky is, well he’s a stinker. He hasn’t gotten out in a while, though.”

“Stinky?” He wrinkled his nose, as if the name itself had an offensive odor.

“The cat. His name is Stinky. The shelter I got him from had already named him that and well, who was I to cause an identity crisis for a middle aged cat?”

“Mhmm. Well, good night,” he said, moving away and opening the door to the street.

“I didn’t even get your name,” she called to his retreating back.

“Malcolm,” he said over his shoulder. The door slid closed behind him, separating the two.

_**Earth, July 2145** _

The doorbell beeped at her, barely audible over the sound of the kitchen timer also beeping. She ran out of the bedroom, looking between the door and the oven before grabbing an oven mitt and pulling the no-longer-frozen pizza out and turning the timer off. The doorbell beeped again as she walked towards the door, the oven mitt still on her hand as she palmed the door open.

Malcolm stood on the other side of the door frame, once again in civilian clothing. It was too warm for the jacket he had worn over the winter. **I wonder what it would smell like** , she thought off-handedly.

“Hi; haven’t seen you in a while,” Charlotte drawled. “What brings you back to my neck of the woods?”

“I um, I was passing by again and heard something beeping a lot and wondered if there was a bomb about to explode or something,” he answered, rubbing at the back of his neck.

“Mmmhmm, sure,” she said skeptically as she stepped into the corridor and shut the door. “You didn’t have kitchen timers in England growing up?”

“To be fair, it was beeping for at least two minutes. Thought maybe you had died.”

She rolled her eyes at that, not saying anything.

“How’s Stench doing?” He asked quickly.

“What? Oh, you mean Stinky? He’s fine,” she answered, bemused.

“Good. Good. Well, I’ll get out of your hair,” he said, nodding quickly.

At the moment, a loud and familiar noise emanated from the apartment. Charlotte turned and palmed the door open, afraid to look at what awaited her.

Stinky the Great, Destroyer of Blanket Forts, had struck again. This time he lay in the middle of the chaos, three out of four of the chairs balanced precariously against one another on their two back legs. He mewed once, then put his head on his paws and slowly closed his eyes.

“Umm, this is going to be bad,” Charlotte mumbled. “Stinky, get off of there!” She said loudly, causing the cat to indeed jump down. As he did he bumped one of the chairs, throwing off the balance between them and sending them clattering to the ground.

Stinky the Great, afraid of the noise, darted away from it and towards the door and his human at the door. She reached down, grabbing him as he tried to run past her, spinning around so she once again faced the man who had disturbed her dinner.

“Do you need help fixing that?” He asked, pointing at the pile of blankets and chairs.

“No, it’s fine, I can get it set back up. I don’t think he did that much damage,” Charlotte answered, struggling with the cat whose only desire was to be put down to cause more chaos.

“Well if he didn’t do that much damage it won’t take long for me to fix it,” Malcolm answered, about to step in to the apartment.

“You don’t need to fix it; I’m an engineer, not a damsel in distress,” she said, her words tinged with anger at his male dominance display.

“Right. Well then, have a good night.” He nodded once more, lips thinned, before retreating to the street quickly.

Charlotte rolled her eyes as she stepped back into her apartment, setting Stinky down and walking towards her luke-warm pizza. **Men...**

_**Earth, early November 2145** _

Charlotte lifted a hand to the door panel slowly, arms weighed down by bags of groceries. It had been a short trek from the public transit platform to the apartment building, but carrying ten bags of groceries and a backpack full of cat food was enough to weigh even her down.

“Oh, let me get some of those,” a familiar voice said behind her.

She didn’t glance back at him, blindly passing him the bags on her right arm before palming the door open. The panel sent out soft tones as she entered her code, the door finally sliding open. She tramped across the floor to the table set back in a nook, taking care not to drop the bag that contained glass jars on the table as she set everything down.

“Uh, thanks for your help,” she said finally, watching as Malcolm set the other bags on the table.

“Of course; happy to help.” His eyes roved over the apartment, taking in the pictures on the wall and the plants scattered over the shelfs in the kitchen and sitting area. The ubiquitous blanket fort was dismantled, the chairs surrounding the table and the blankets tucked away in the linen closet, much to his disappointment. He had half expected her to always have the fort put up, but with the cat -- Stinky, that’s right -- always wreaking havoc perhaps it was best not to chance it. His eyes lighted on the diploma from Starfleet Academy, reading the name.

“Do you want something to drink? Tea, coffee, water?” She looked down at the bags of groceries, realizing her attempt at hospitality was perhaps a bit premature.

“No, no, I should be going. I was just passing by and saw you struggling and thought it best if I stopped to help.”

“Your chivalry is noted and appreciated, Malcolm. Do you have plans for Thanksgiving?”

“No, can’t say that I do. Starfleet usually has some sort of meal for those who aren’t going home, so I might stop at that for a plate or two. You?” Malcolm leaned against one of the chairs, fingers tapping at the wood.

“I’m actually hosting the dinner this year; just my parents and me, unfortunately. My brother is having it with his husband’s family.”

“Good, good. Well, I’d best be off. Have a good Thanksgiving, Charlotte.” He walked himself to the door, leaving Charlotte confused in his wake. She knew she hadn’t told him her name yet; had he been asking neighbors about her?

Earth, Two Weeks Later

Charlotte felt more like a spy than an engineer, having finally tracked down Malcolm through a channel of mutual friends and co-workers. She had learned his age, rank, last name, and comm number through the line, different sources giving her different tidbits.

One thing she learned, from a neighbor actually, was why Malcolm was in her building so often just passing by. Ruby, who lived a couple floors above her, was his “friend”, though friends with benefits emphasis on the benefits would be a better term. That was a bit of unwelcome information, as that meant he was not in the market for a girlfriend. She wasn’t looking to be another notch in his headboard, not that he had shown any interest in her anyways.

She punched in his comm sequence anyways, hoping he wouldn’t answer. It took a few moments, but his face finally appeared on the screen. She nearly let out a squeak of surprise, not expecting him to actually answer.

“Hello,” he said slowly, his eyes shifting over the screen and taking in all that he saw. “Dare I ask how you got my number?”

“A friend of a friend gave it to me when I was asking about British men in Starfleet; short list, by the way,” she chuckled nervously.

“I’m aware. You said you’re an engineer, but I think you’re more likely a spy,” he jousted.

“Never underestimate the power of a curious woman, Malcolm Reed.”

He hummed at that, not saying anything for a moment before asking, “not that I’m one to complain about a woman, a uh, beautiful woman ringing me, but to what do I owe the pleasure of this call before work?”

Charlotte felt her face flush red at his words, forgetting for a second why it was she had called other than to make sure the number was correct. “I was wondering if you’re busy tonight, actually. I was thinking maybe dinner and a movie at my place? I’d cook something up for us; I promise I won’t let the timer go off for so long you think it’s a bomb.”

“That sounds agreeable, but on one condition,” he grinned. “We have to watch the movie in your blanket fort. You seem to always have one, it wouldn’t surprise me if you already had one assembled.”

“Sadly, Stinky would destroy it as soon as I left for work, so I only have it up at night, if I have a chance to make one at all. And deal. What’s your favorite kind of food?”

“I’ll eat anything; not particular to anything.”

“Come on, you have to have a favorite kind of food. Indian? Thai? Burgers? I make a mean Chicken Alfredo, Malcolm.”

“Anything would be fine, though since you mention your prowess at Chicken Alfredo perhaps I should see if it’s as mean as you say.”

They quickly agreed on a time after both of their shifts ended with room for showers before meeting, Charlotte starting to tell him her address before remembering he already knows where she lives. She signed off quickly, spinning around in the chair to face Stinky, who lay on the back of the couch and stared at her with half-lidded eyes.

“Now, you have to be on your best behaviour, old man. Especially since we’re building a blanket fort. No chaos from you tonight, got it?”

The cat blinked at her slowly, then closed his eyes to return to his nap.

Malcolm rung the door chime, listening to the sounds of scurrying and the oven timer beeping from the other side. There was a crash, followed by muffled cursing from Charlotte.

“Give me a second!” Charlotte yelled, hoping Malcolm heard at least that.

The timer stopped beeping after a moment, and then the door slid open.

“Hi,” Charlotte greeted, slightly breathless. She wore jeans and a t-shirt, though it was a nice t-shirt. “Come on in. Watch your step, I need to clean up a plant that got spilled. Oh, and shoes off; they go on that rug -- which is covered in dirt. Nevermind.”

Malcolm let out a nervous chuckle at that, hands in the pockets of his leather coat over the same shirt he had worn the first time they met. He looked around the apartment again, trying to guess where the coat closet was, or where the broom was. He noticed Stinky on the kitchen counter then, watching as the cat reached into a bowl and retrieved a piece of chicken.

The Brit walked towards what he took as the broom closet, opening it with a triumphant noise before returning to the pile of dirt as Charlotte carried the rug away to the garbage can to shake off. She noticed the cat on the counter, yelling at him to scram. As he jumped down, his back leg disturbed the bowl, sending it careening to the floor with a clatter of broken ceramic.

Charlotte stopped in her tracks, staring at the chicken on the floor for a moment, tears welling. She sighed, finishing shaking out the rug before stooping to begin the process of cleaning up the now ruined food.

Malcolm came around the corner, broom in hand, and leaned it against the counter before beginning to pick up the pieces of the broken bowl. They worked in silence, Charlotte biting her cheek.

“This wasn’t how I planned on this date starting,” she said finally, putting the garbage can back in its place beneath the sink.

“I believe that whole-heartedly. Do you want to reschedule?”

“No, no, not unless you want to. I mean, I made more than enough food for the both of us, it just won’t have any chicken in it.” She started then, realizing something. “I haven’t even taken your coat for you; I’m a terrible hostess. Here, let me go hang that up for you.” She reached out, taking Malcolm’s jacket to put in the closet beside the entry door.

Malcolm stayed in the kitchen, lifting one of the lids off a pan on the stove to uncover the alfredo sauce. It smelled delicious, if nothing else.

Charlotte quickly dished up the food then, taking them over to the table in the corner.

Dinner continued without a hitch, Stinky apparently tired out from the chaos he had already wreaked. The two exchanged small talk, the usual getting to know you questions eventually leading to talk of work. It was quickly discovered that Malcolm was in security, which actually overlapped with Charlotte’s engineering. Talk quickly turned to advancements in weapons, and then the warp five engine that was nearing completion.

“I’d give my last breath to serve on that ship,” Charlotte said, taking her bowl to the sink to wash it. “I mean, there’s going to have to be some top-notch engineers on that ship, and think of how much newbies would have to learn instead of just putting the team that’s been working on the engine as the engineering department on the ship. They haven’t even started construction on it, of course; the engine isn’t complete yet. But we broke the warp three barrier last year so it’s almost there. Just think of it, Malcolm!”

Her exuberance was contagious, the Brit stifling a smile as he too brought his dirty bowl to the sink. “Shall we watch the movie now?”

“First, we have to make the blanket fort; you said that was a condition of this date, after all.” She washed his bowl quickly, gesturing towards the linen closet where all the blankets were stored so he could at least get those out before they began construction.

Charlotte pulled the chairs out, forming the base of the structure. The two bickered good-naturedly about the best way to put the blankets, Malcolm deferring to the engineer who had grantedly more experience assembling the fort with the tools provided. The cushions from the couch became the floor of the fort, and one lantern lit the space beneath the blankets until Malcolm turned it off so the PADD was more visible.

It was an action movie they watched, from the late 20th century, starring someone named Bruce Willis taking on aliens and delivering someone to a pyramid to save the world. Charlotte had popped popcorn before the movie began and placed it in a large bowl for them to share, putting it between them as they lay on their stomachs to watch the film.

As the credits rolled, Charlotte glanced quickly at Malcolm to see what his next move would be. He returned her look, sparing a small smile, before opening his mouth to say something. Before he could, something fluffy and screaming came crashing down on them both.

Charlotte let out a guffaw as Stinky scrambled over their backs through the blankets, one chair resting on her back and another on her legs. “You okay?” She asked, feeling in the dark where Malcolm had been a second before. Her hand connected with a shoulder, then a face.

“Never better,” he replied sarcastically, rubbing at his head. He reached over to where he thought her head was, but was met by only air as she shimmied away from him and out from under the blankets and chairs.

"Well, I guess that puts an end to the night," Charlotte said, looking over the broken fort and picking up the chairs that had pinned Malcolm down.

He crawled out from beneath the blankets, rubbing at his head again.

"You need ice for that?" She asked, already walking towards the freezer to get a bag of peas.

"No, no, it's far from the worst I've been hurt," he chuckled. "I should be going; early morning for the both of us, I reckon."

"Yeah, for sure. Thank you for coming and putting up with the chaos of errors caused by my cat. We'll have to do it again sometime, but without the chaos," she answered hopefully.

"Sounds like a plan. Good night, Charlotte." He paused, unsure of his next move. After a second, he turned towards the door to let himself out.

“Wait, you forgot your coat,” Charlotte said quickly. She reached into the coat closet, handing the leather jacket to him as he stood at the door. As he finished putting it on she leaned in quickly, pressing her lips to his cheek as she opened the door behind him. “Night, Malcolm.”

He froze, smiling hesitantly after a second before nodding and walking out into the hallway and then the night.

_**Earth, Two Days Later** _

Charlotte’s hand hovered over the call button, vacillating over her decision. Finally, she bit the bullet and dialed the comm. One part hoped he was still at the base, the other hoped he’d answer. It was late evening, after all, so maybe she’d be lucky.

Malcolm answered on the third ring, regulation blue tank top showing under the unzipped jumpsuit. His hair was spiked up, as if he'd been running his hands through it a lot.

"Hello, Charlotte. What can I help you with?"

“Do you want to come to Thanksgiving at my place tomorrow night? I know it’s kind of short notice but my parents aren’t coming after all and I already have all the food bought to cook tomorrow and I can’t finish all the leftovers myself so,” she trailed off, realizing she was talking at warp speed and Malcolm was looking rather blindsided.

“What time would you like me over?” He asked after a moment, smoothing his hair down quickly.

“Ummm, 1500-ish? The food will be done around 1700 or 1730, but you’re more than welcome to come over before that if you want. Could watch another movie or something if you want while the turkey is roasting. If you want to bring a friend or two along you can; I always cook more than enough.” She hoped he wouldn't bring a friend along, scared it might be Ruby from upstairs.

"It'll be just me. I'll see you at 1500 tomorrow, then. Do you want me to bring anything?"

"No, just you. See you then, Malcolm."

The doorbell chimed at her at 1500 as she put the lid back on the roaster after basting the turkey. The heavenly scent of turkey, spices, and yeast filled the air as she opened the door to reveal Malcolm on the other side wearing the leather jacket over a sweater. In his hands was a pie container, the grocery store sticker half torn off of the plastic.

“I know you said not to bring anything, but I felt it would be rude to show up empty-handed when you’re cooking a full meal,” he said by way of greeting, stepping inside.

“It’s certainly welcome; options are always good. I just got the rolls into the oven, and it’s looking like the turkey should be done in about two hours. Take a seat. Wanna watch the football game? It should be starting soon.”

“I’ll admit, I never have gotten into American football,” he replied, sitting on the sofa infront of the videowall. “We can watch it if you want, though.”

“Actually I prefer hockey to football. I think there’s a game from last night in the buffer, if you want.” She grabbed the remote, already queueing up the game. She hadn’t had a chance to watch it the night before, too busy cleaning before he came over.

Fast forwarding through advertisements, the game ended as the timer for the turkey finally beeped its last call. Charlotte began to pull the bird out of the roaster as the doorbell chimed, and she frowned, confused, as she set it down.

"Can you get the door?" She asked Malcolm. She wasn’t expecting anyone, so she had no clue who it could be.

An older man and woman stood on the other side of the door, looks of surprise on their faces when they saw it was Malcolm answering the door.

“I know we don’t have the wrong address. Where’s our daughter?” The woman asked, pushing past Malcolm to enter the apartment.

“Mom? Dad? You said you weren’t coming. What are you doing here?” Charlotte sent an apologetic look to Malcolm as she came to the door, giving both her parents hugs.

“What do you mean what are we doing here? You invited us!”

“And then you called yesterday to say you wouldn’t be coming because you were going to go with Cassius and Konstantin to the in-laws’ house because they invited you and you couldn’t say no,” Charlotte continued, ushering them in so the cat wouldn’t escape.

“Well, Konstantin’s parents came down with the flu, and we knew you already had the food so we thought we’d just come over here to be with you. And who’s this charming man?” Charlotte’s mother turned to Malcolm, extending a hand to shake.

“Malcolm Reed, Starfleet security. Pleased to meet you, Mrs. Watson.”

“Pleasure is mine, Malcolm. I’d ask you how long you two have been dating, but then you’d have to answer the same questions from Cassius when he gets here and I doubt you’d want to repeat yourself. You’ll get to meet Charlie’s brother and his family soon; they should be coming too.”

“You invited them all over?! I don’t have enough food for six adults, let alone three kids, too! And I don’t have room for everyone!” Charlotte put a hand to her forehead, rubbing at the headache that was starting to form.

“Well we’ll just have to make room somehow, and quickly.”

Charlotte held up a finger to her mother in a “wait a moment” gesture, grabbing Malcolm’s arm to drag him back into the kitchen.

“I am so so sorry. I had no idea any of this was going to happen. If you want to bail, you totally can. You didn’t sign up for meeting my entire family, including my three niblings.”

“No, it’s fine. You need all the help you can get right now. What’s the strategy?”

“Okay, go in the bathroom and grab the shower liner, not the curtain. We’ll put that on the couch and the kids can sit there and use the coffee table to eat. I’ll dig in the closet for the table leaf, hopefully I still have it, and then we can fit all the adults around the table if we squeeze. We’ll have to leave all the food in the kitchen so there’s enough room for everyone at the table, but it should be fine. Hopefully I made enough for everyone; I know we won’t have leftovers, though.”

Malcolm did as she said, tucking the liner over the cushions to create a hopefully mess-proof kids table. Charlotte’s father helped put the leaf on the table, the tablecloth now barely large enough to cover the entire top.

The door chimed again then, the sound of a crying child loud on the other side.

Charlotte’s brother and his family entered after Charlotte opened the door, settling the three kids ranging in age from eight to three on the couch. Charlotte set the table quickly, trying to stave off questions from her brother and brother-in-law, knowing it was only a matter of time before the interrogation.

“So, how did you meet?” Cassius asked, dishing up plates for his children.

Malcolm quickly recounted their first encounter, earning many laughs around the table at Charlotte’s expense. “It was my fault for letting the cat out, really,” he added, “I stood there talking for so long.”

“Don’t try to take the blame from Charlie, I’m sure she was so gaga eyes for you she didn’t even notice the cat had gotten out,” Konstantin replied.

“How long have you been dating, then? She never mentioned you before, which is a new one for my sister,” Cassius questioned after returning from the kids’ table.

“This was actually supposed to be our second date, but apparently it’s a triple date now,” Charlotte replied, taking a sip of her cider and shooting daggers at her oblivious mother.

Cassius and Konstantin exchanged looks of trepidation, wincing at the drama that was sure to occur. They felt bad for Malcolm, who was an unwilling participant in the fiasco rained down by their mother.

“Thanksgiving with the family hardly seems like a second date,” Charlotte’s mother replied. “Surely you’ve been together longer.”

“Well, it wasn’t supposed to involve the family, since you said you weren’t coming. Since I had already bought all the food and already started making the pie and the rolls, I invited him over to watch the game and eat some food since we both had nothing better to do,” Charlotte jousted back. “I’ll be lucky to get a third date after today,” she mumbled.

After the meal, which involved more interrogation and dagger eyes than Malcolm had seen since his own family gatherings, the children began to fuss. Charlotte of course had the perfect activity for them.

“You guys wanna build a blanket fort?” She asked her niblings, already walking to the linen closet. She was answered with a chorus of enthusiasm, and the four quickly set to work. Once the fort was built, she left them with a PADD to watch videos on as the clean-up task began in the kitchen.

Three hours later, the apartment was empty save for Charlotte and Malcolm. The blanket fort had been dismantled, the table was returned to its smaller form, the dishes were washed, dried, and put away, and what little leftovers there had been had been absconded by Charlotte’s mother.

“I feel like I just stopped a warp core breach for five hours. Damn, I hate family gatherings,” Charlotte muttered, collapsing on the couch. Malcolm sat next to her, similarly exhausted. “Thank you for staying and helping with them all. I promise it wasn’t some scheme.”

“I was sure it wasn’t. You’re an engineer, not an actress.”

“You think I wasn’t acting the entire time my family was over? I never wanted to slam the door in someone’s face as much as I did today.”

The two sat in silence for a while, both lingering on the edge of sleep after the events of the day.

“I should get going. Thank you for having me over. I’ll ring you for dinner next week sometime, yeah?” Malcolm said, standing up and retrieving his coat from the closet.

“Yeah, of course. Sounds good. See you then.”

_**Somewhere in space, January 2152** _

The comm panel beeped in Charlotte’s quarters, startling her as she dried her hair.

“Watson here,” she answered, hoping it wasn’t Commander Tucker. After running into some aliens and trading for technology that wasn’t completely compatible with the _Enterprise_ ’s systems, it had been a long day of fixing cascading problems and rerouting energy and wiring. On top of that, the painkillers Phlox had given her for her cramps had worn off hours ago and she wasn’t going back to Sickbay for that after the day she had.

“Lieutenant, come to my quarters,” Reed ordered, “I have something to show you.”

“Be right there,” she grumbled. She pulled on civilian clothing, her jumpsuit still in the wash cycle.

She palmed the bell on the door panel, waiting for Malcolm’s call to enter. Once she crossed the threshold, she stopped in her tracks as the door slid shut behind her.

Malcolm had drawn his sheets off the bed, draping them over the lone chair in his quarters and the corner of his desk to form a canopy. His mattress was on the floor under the canopy, and he lay resting on it in a henley and chinos.

“Surprise, love,” he said, holding an arm out to gesture her towards him. She quickly dove under the blanket, nestling into his side.

“I haven’t built a blanket fort in so long,” she whispered, “not since getting assigned to _Enterprise_.”

“Few blankets in space, I’m afraid, so it’s not as good as the ones we’d make in your apartment, but I felt you needed it after your shift today. Now come on, I’ve got a movie queued up for us to watch if you want.”

She flipped onto her stomach, glancing over at him before kissing his cheek. “That’s the same shirt from our first date, isn’t it? You can barely tell it’s brown anymore. You need a new one.”

“There’s no outfitters in space, love.”


End file.
